I want to unfold.
Let no place in me hold itself closed,
for where I am closed, I am false.
I want to stay clear in your sight.
-Ranier Maria Rilke
When we hear the word wisdom, we often think of hard won experience, or (hopefully) one of the advantages of aging. But our Wild Wisdom is inborn, it is the instinctual and intuitive guide that knows one rule: Follow your Heart. The wildness of our heart is on the other side of the boundaries of our self-image and the societal roles that we have inherited. It is the deep knowing that calls us to become our self, to be who we are no matter what. This is where our personal art and our unique contribution comes from – and the more we believe in it, the more it guides us. We feel it in our body and in our belly, and sometimes it arrives with an agitation or fear and resistance. It takes courage to follow the promptings of our wild heart – and we can numb that voice, or run away from it – but we really can’t save ourselves from it. Rather it is the voice of what can save us.
My yoga and meditation practice helps me be honest about the voice of my wild wisdom heart – and gives me the stability to follow it in a way that is not impulsive, but true to my nature. I think that it is a lifelong practice to learn to link our inner wisdom to outer action in a way that feels authentic and in harmony with the world. To create that space every day where all of myself can be held and welcomed rather than domesticated and dismissed, is one of the most important parts of practice for me. In that space, all of my experience, and all the wild longings and knowings of my being have a place. It is my own indigenous nature, native to the earth, connected to everything, belonging to everyone…without this heartbeat, there is something missing. And it is all contained in my body and in my heart – a spirituality that leaves nothing out. My practice helps me to tune in and listen…and learn. It is the art of personal practice to stay connected to and live from this wild and sacred Heart. In doing so, we claim our true health and happiness, and which naturally influences and benefits others.